Life in the villa was leisurely and carefree; before I knew it, it was the day of the chrysanthemum banquet.
Early in the morning, Qingyan got up and sat in front of the bronze mirror. To complement the Chrysanthemum Banquet, she specially changed into a light blue summer dress embroidered with chrysanthemums of various colors. Her hair was adorned with a chrysanthemum hairpin made of colorful gold wire, and the stamens of the chrysanthemums were inlaid with colorful pearls. From a distance, it looked like she was wearing a blooming, exquisite chrysanthemum.
"Sulan, is everything prepared? Have someone strictly guard every entrance to the courtyard; no one other than ours should be allowed to enter." Qingyan glanced in the direction of the twins' stroller; many people had come specifically for the two children.
Erlu had dispatched his personal guards to surround the courtyard. In addition, Consort Tong had sent a message through Granny Shu that she would personally attend the Chrysanthemum Banquet. To outsiders, this was a gesture of respect for Yin, but Qingyan felt immense pressure.
"Granny Shu asked again when Mother will return?" Qingyan pursed her lips, quickly ate her breakfast, and then prepared her makeup.
"Your Highness, the nanny said she will come after breakfast!" Su Lan reported respectfully.
Upon hearing this, Qingyan turned around and looked at Sulan, asking, "How are the preparations for the garden pavilion going?"
"Your Highness, please rest assured, Su Zhu prepared it herself, there shouldn't be any problems." Su Lan trusted Su Zhu completely; the two of them were maids who came with her as part of her dowry and were the people Qing Yan trusted most.
“Alright, have the Buddhist hall behind the garden cleaned up as well.” Qingyan remembered that her mother liked the Buddhist hall set up in the Yuanmingyuan Garden, where there was a large Buddha statue made from a whole birch tree brought from Mount Wutai.
This large Buddha statue was quite famous among the princes. Yinzhi had repeatedly tried to outshine Yintai, and even whispered with the Crown Prince on several occasions. They believed that the large Buddha statue must have been a secret gift from Emperor Kangxi to Yintai.
Otherwise, how could such a unique Buddha statue have arrived at the Yuanmingyuan? After it was built there, Yinzhi claimed that it was brought from Mount Wutai. One can imagine how many secrets were involved.
"Little darling, how's the preparation going?" Yin walked in from outside, dressed in a light blue casual outfit with a bright yellow belt around his waist.
"Everything is ready, what's wrong?" Qingyan asked, puzzled.
The Chrysanthemum Banquet was a banquet for the women. Didn't Yin say he would stay in the study?
"Just now, Anda came to deliver an imperial decree, saying that we should come together to admire the chrysanthemums." Yin saw that the time was almost up, and Kangxi made the decision on the spur of the moment.
What? !
Qingyan immediately stood up, looking directly at Yin, hoping he would give a negative answer.
"It's confirmed, Father has sent people, and several princes will also be coming. We need to prepare plenty of supplies!" Yin sighed helplessly.
As Emperor Kangxi grew older, he increasingly enjoyed unexpected situations arising from unforeseen circumstances.
"Alright, use all the extra things we prepared." Qingyan was relieved. In case someone tried to steal anything from the kitchen, she had the kitchen prepare the same meal.
Yin nodded with satisfaction. The girl had really grown up and knew how to prepare things more thoroughly.
"Su Peisheng, you and Su Lan prepare the things and clean the main hall next to Shi Ting." Yin pondered, preparing for Kangxi and the princes to sit in the main hall.
"The main hall?!" Qingyan recalled the location of the flower garden. The main hall that Yin mentioned was facing the chrysanthemum flower garden.
When the windows of the main hall are opened, one can see flowerbeds of blooming chrysanthemums and peonies.
"That spot is the best. Pushing it open will allow you to enjoy the flowers without disturbing you." Yin designed it this way specifically to prevent Kangxi from doing whatever he wanted.
"Done!" Qingyan nodded. The pavilion was located in a blind spot of the main hall. All the curtains around the pavilion were opened. Standing on the pavilion, one could only see the flower beds and the roof of the main hall from a high vantage point.
As the banquet time approached, the entire kitchen of the Yuanmingyuan Garden became busy, with Su Peisheng personally overseeing the people coming and going.
"You all need to be on your guard. Be extremely careful with today's meals. Anyone who dares to tamper with them will be beaten to death on the spot," Su Peisheng relayed Yin's order.
Everyone's faces paled, and they all agreed, becoming not only much more efficient but also extra careful.
At the flowerbed, Tulichen and Erlu conducted a final inspection. The two hid most of their men, and now the entire Yuanmingyuan was under their control.
"Everything is ready. Once the princes arrive, lock the back door as much as possible to prevent anyone from entering or leaving through it." Tu Lichen brought the imperial decree. After the banquet begins, the servants on the outer perimeter are not allowed to enter the second gate. Those who can move around in the courtyard are basically the trusted servants of the various masters.
Qingyan sat in his study, finalizing the list of names.
"Little darling, don't be nervous." Yin looked at the list and noticed that some of the female relatives on it were not treated with proper etiquette. They had all returned from beyond the Great Wall. "Don't worry too much about these princesses from beyond the Great Wall. Their power over there is much weaker than before."
Qingyan listened carefully to Yin's words. These people were of noble status, and after entering the capital, their manners were looked down upon. Even when they went to Chenggan Palace to pay their respects, they had an arrogant attitude.
"A princess from outside the Great Wall?!" Qingyan asked, puzzled.
Weren't those wives of the princes not allowed to enter the pass? How come there's a problem this time? Could it be that her little butterfly wings fluttered?
"Well, these princesses' wives came to the capital during the Golden Festival. They'll stay in the capital for two or three months. Since you're holding a chrysanthemum banquet, they shamelessly came over," Yin explained.
She nodded helplessly. It was obvious that they hadn't received an invitation and had come directly. She said that the number of people invited to her chrysanthemum banquet was significantly less than the number of people who were going to attend.
"Your Majesty, the wives of several princes with iron caps have arrived." Su Lan hurried in. The wives of the primary consorts, led by the wife of Prince Zheng, had been staying outside the Great Wall for a long time and their manners were not exactly good. However, the women in the family were all exceptionally fierce, which was a real headache.
"Okay!" Qingyan nodded, preparing to head straight over to greet them.
"I'm going to greet the Iron-Capped Prince. Don't say anything more, and ignore what those people are saying," Yin instructed worriedly.
Qingyan smiled slightly. These people are all extremely important to the prince, so he should try his best not to make enemies with them.
She helped Sulan walk directly out of the main hall and saw that the other wives had already entered the second gate.
"Greetings to the Fourth Prince's wife!" Prince Zheng's wife performed a half-bow, and Qingyan quickly returned the greeting.
"Your Highness is too polite. As a junior, I should not accept such courtesy." Qing remembered that he had Su Lan investigate beforehand and found that these wives had visited Yuqing Palace and the residences of Yin and Yin Zhi, and the three primary wives had treated them with the highest level of courtesy.
Princess Consort Zheng sized up Qingyan. The Fourth Princess Consort was the youngest of the five princes, and her family background was indeed the strongest—the princes from beyond the Great Wall, who didn't know the twin generals of the Ulanara clan? (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
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